The Riccar Arrived
I've been using the Brilliance for about an hour now, and have not been entirely impressed. Had I payed over $900 like Riccar would like me to, I would be disappointed. First of all, the hose is extremely short. I tried to clean some air vents today,(which are located on the ceiling here in AZ) and I could barely reach them. My $80 Bissell can do this easily. The metal wands also seem cheap, but still better than plastic. The bag is also very small. I would expect something larger from something in this price range, but I have heard these bags can be stuffed and still provide suction. The suction from the bypass motor is quite week. I am using a used bag and filter, but still, quite low.
One thing I am surprised to find is that the vacuum only draws 11amps when both motors are running. I wonder how the power is divided. A 5amp direct motor is pretty good, but the bypass motor's RPM must be pretty slow at that power. But whatever they draw, the vacuum does clean well.My carpet does feel cleaner after I vacuumed thoroughly. Like when I step on a carpet after being vacuumed by my Dyson, it doesn't feel too clean. The Riccar really fluffs up the fibers and feels clean. I think this has more to do with the brush-roll than the extra airflow, but gets the job done.
The vacuum is also much quieter than you'd think it would be. It's not much louder than my Kirby Tradition. One thing I would change about the setup is this: The direct air motor does not shut off when you lock the vacuum upright. You either have to turn it off on the handle, or switch it to tool mode. There is a knob that you have to turn to divert the suction to the hose. There is some switch the turns off the direct air motor when you move it to tools. It would be much easier to just switch it off when you put the handle upright. I know the model was made 4 years ago, so Tacony might have changed it this.
So far, I say if you have a $1000 to spend on a vacuum, a Kirby is a better choice. But for what I spent, it's not bad. I still think my Dyson DC14 is easier to use. But we will see, maybe I'll fall in love with it.